Muddying the Waters

THE Congress(I) game plan for the next Lok Sabha elections is simple: support rebel groups in the opposition parties, then project the Con-gress(I) as the only party which can provide a stable government. After all, P.V. Narasimha Rao, who came to power heading a minority government, is all set to complete a full term while opposition chief ministers with two-thirds maj ority in states such as Guj arat and Andhra Pradesh have fallen by the wayside.

It is a strategy Indira Gandhi had used successfully when she stormed back to power in 1980. The only difference is in the style. Wary of a popular backlash if there was too close an identification with opposition rebels, Rao has ensured that the Congress(I) meddles, but secretly. For one, Union minister V.C. Shukla is widely believed to have assisted Shankarsinh Vaghela in his rebellion, a charge Shukla vehemently denies. "It is completely baseless. I was touring Madhya Pradesh (his home state) in mid-September when people say I was plotting to wreck the bjp." But a senior party colleague says: "Shukla had informed me in mid-September that the Gujarat Government was going and he had had talks with Vaghela." As the rebel MLAs were airlifted to Khajuraho, Shukla managed to keep in touch by telephone calls from Raipur to Khajuraho's district collector and sp, who were camping in the town on the state Congress(I) Government's directive.

But the bjp is preparing to strike back. Party chief L.K. Advani has virtually declared war, blaming the Congress(I) for the trouble in Gujarat. Says Advani: "The Congress(I) is busy hatching a conspiracy to finish the bjp." Even rss chief Rajendra Singh attacked Rao in his Dussehra address to the rss cadre, describing the past four years of Congress(I) rule as the most scandalous ever.

The bjp is expected to take the battle to Parliament, where it is in a position to embarrass the Congress(I). In the winter session, there is little doubt that the bjp will lead the chorus against the criminal-politician nexus and godman Chandraswami's closeness to Rao. What's ahead is clearly confrontation.

Do You Like This Story? Awesome! Now share the story Too bad. Tell us what you didn't like in the comments